March 26, 2014

I have to spend about 20 minutes a day pumping breast milk while my baby is at daycare – this means I have a good amount of time on my hands where well… I can’t use my hands. (I know they make those hands-free pumping bras but the inconvenience of changing into one of those does not outweigh the convenience it provides.) Enough about boobies. The point is this time gives me the perfect opportunity to catch up on all the videos I never seem to find time for.

So the other day I asked my Twitter friends what their favorite TED talk is. There are some gems in here for sure:

• Want to be happy? Be grateful. David Steindl-RastThe one thing all humans have in common is that each of us wants to be happy, says Brother David Steindl-Rast, a monk and interfaith scholar. And happiness, he suggests, is born from gratitude. An inspiring lesson in slowing down, looking where you’re going, and above all, being grateful.
Recommended by Natalie

• The key to success? Grit. Angela Lee DuckworthLeaving a high-flying job in consulting, Angela Lee Duckworth took a job teaching math to seventh graders in a New York public school. She quickly realized that IQ wasn’t the only thing separating the successful students from those who struggled. Here, she explains her theory of “grit” as a predictor of success.
Recommended by Elleonce

• How great leaders inspire action. Simon SinekSimon Sinek has a simple but powerful model for inspirational leadership all starting with a golden circle and the question “Why?” His examples include Apple, Martin Luther King, and the Wright brothers …
Recommended by Mike

• Before Avatar … A curious boy. James CameronJames Cameron’s big-budget (and even bigger-grossing) films create unreal worlds all their own. In this personal talk, he reveals his childhood fascination with the fantastic — from reading science fiction to deep-sea diving — and how it ultimately drove the success of his blockbuster hits “Aliens,” “The Terminator,” “Titanic” and “Avatar.”
Recommeded by Liz

• Normal: Joli Talusan VegaJoli Talusan Vega is a 10-year-old with a message. She is a survivor of childhood retinoblastoma, a very rare pediatric cancer of the eye which has left her with a prosthetic right eye. As a result of her cancer and subsequent vision disability, Joli has developed a deep sense of compassion, care, and justice. She has a kind heart and a mature perspective on what it means to be a good friend and a caring person; she sees the beauty in what makes us different.
Recommended by Olivia

• The Happiness Advantage: Linking Positive Brains to Performance. Shawn AchorIn Shawn’s TEDxBloomington presentation, he says that most modern research focuses on the average, but that “if we focus on the average, we will remain merely average.” He wants to study the positive outliers, and learn how not only to bring people up to the average, but to move the entire average up.Recommended by Jose

• Your Elusive Creative Genius.Elizabeth GilbertElizabeth Gilbert muses on the impossible things we expect from artists and geniuses — and shares the radical idea that, instead of the rare person “being” a genius, all of us “have” a genius. It’s a funny, personal and surprisingly moving talk.
Recommended by Jensen and Danielle

• The Power of Vulnerability. Brené BrownBrené Brown studies human connection — our ability to empathize, belong, love. In a poignant, funny talk, she shares a deep insight from her research, one that sent her on a personal quest to know herself as well as to understand humanity. A talk to share.
Recommended by Alexandra. I can also pipe in and say this one changed my life.

So now I want to hear from you – which TED talks (or any other videos!) would you recommend?

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The Braid Method is how I work (with my sister) to help other creatives thrive in the work / life overlap by helping creatives hone in on their business vision and design their life exactly the way they dream it. The Work >

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